The RMT strike entered its fourth day on Wednesday amid a backdrop of rising anger over pay and a Tory crackdown on trade unions.
The strike by rail workers has already been running for over a month and is set to go well into the summer, alongside action over pay by other workers, as the RMT said it was prepared for prolonged walkouts to defend its members.
Three strike days have already taken place at the end of June, with a further walkout held today, Wednesday 27th July. Future dates are set for the 18th and 20th of August while another rail union, ASLEF, is also on strike this coming Saturday.
Steve Skelly of the RMT in Wales and lead officer for the union’s Great Western Rail division, said that the dispute involved three key elements:
“What we’re seeking is no compulsory redundancies [and] that no changes to conditions will take place without prior agreement. And we’re also seeking a pay rise for our members…these are the same group of workers who have worked throughout the Covid pandemic and were hailed as heroes by the UK transport minister.”
“Unfortunately, we’re unable to achieve any significant progress in those key areas. And that’s why we’re in the second phase of our industrial action.”
Skelly said that the strike had been “absolutely rock solid” and that the support from the general public “has been excellent.”
“We’ve got good support here today, and that’s replicated across Wales,” he told voice.wales. The strike is between the RMT and rail operating firms in England, but mainline routes in Wales are affected and workers in Wales who work for Great Western Rail and Network Rail are part of the action.
Skelly said that the union was prepared for “a prolonged period of industrial action” and “determined to defend our members interests.”
“Frankly, we have no other choice,” he said. “If we don’t defend our members’ interests, we are looking at 1000s of job cuts, the tearing up of existing terms and conditions of employment and finally, the Dickensian models of employment going forward is completely unacceptable to us.”
The strike comes against a backdrop of a rising tide of industrial action in the face of soaring living costs, and following a decade of falling pay and a pandemic where scores of workers saw how essential they were for society to function.
On Friday, the largest ever call centre strike in British history is set to take place as workers in the CWU walkout over pay. The union has also won a huge mandate for industrial action among postal workers.
Meanwhile, Wales’ largest union for healthcare workers, UNISON, announced on Wednesday that it will now be balloting for industrial action over pay in the Welsh NHS after saying it was disappointed by Welsh Government’s pay offer.
“I think, fundamentally, people are realising the complete imbalance and unfairness and inequality in our society,” said Skelly. “In our own particular disputes, they’re telling us there’s no money. However, £500 million a year goes over to profits to train operating companies.”
“Workers are out there, they’re seeing the complete injustice that’s taking place,” he said. “This isn’t just about the rail industry, it’s also about emboldening workers to the fight for a better deal.”
The strikes are also putting the question of re-nationalisation of the railways in England more firmly on the agenda, with RMT General Secreatry, Mick Lynch, telling ITV on Wednesday: “If we had the railway in public ownership, we’d properly fund it…if we got rid of the privateers we could concentrate on running a service for the benefit of the people.”
It is in this context of working class anger and growing confidence that the Tory party is pushing an increasingly anti-union agenda, described by Lynch as right wing fundemntalism.
On Wednesday morning, the UK Government’s transport secretary, Grant Shapps, told Radio 4 that he wanted to further restrict workers’ ability to withdraw their labour. He boasted how the Tory government had already relaxed laws to allow firms to use strike-breaking agency workers.
Both Tory leadership candidates have pledged to outlaw effective strike action. In response, Unite General Secretary, Sharon Graham, wrote that Liz Truss’ had “declared war on the trade union movement” and that Unite would “not bow to threats and any attempt to place us outside of the law will be met with fierce, prolonged resistance.”
Steve Skelly of the RMT said he wasn’t surprised by the rhetoric coming from Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss but the workers’ movement had to respond:
“They want to smash the trade union movement…And I think working people need to do all they can to resist that. The TUC needs to lead the fight, but ultimately, I firmly believe that workers are going to organise themselves and defend their interests.”
* Images by Ka Long Tung
